Reiter prepares for D-I soccer

Stephen Schmidt

Published
1:04 am EDT, Friday, April 2, 2010

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After his team had won the Class LL state championship on Nov. 21, Staples boys soccer coach Dan Woog was worried that the coaches and other voters who determine the postseason awards might overlook midfielder Alan Reiter due to his quiet nature.

"They understood," Woog said of the voters. "They saw what he did, not flashy at all but he really made us go."

Woog described Reiter, who started for the Wreckers since his sophomore year, as a "classic central midfielder." Such a definition has become standard in Reiter's family. His father, Don, played the position at Yale before going on to play professionally for the North American Soccer League's Washington Diplomats in the 70s.

"He has a very soft and deft touch, tremendous ability to switch fields and find open men," Woog said. "He has superb vision, knowing what's going on on the field at all times.

"He leads by example. Players always knew he would find them and get them the ball. He scored a couple of great long-range goals for us this year, but he loves making things happen, that's sort of his thing is being the playmaker."

Before Staples took home its 12th state title in school history, Reiter had already made his college decision. Like his brother, he chose to go to a school in North Carolina, opting for North Carolina State of the ACC. His other two finalists were Rutgers and Harvard.

By making his decision early in his senior year, he was afforded time "to focus on preparing for next year." In addition to playing for the Beachside soccer team, Reiter has been working with a trainer at Fast Fitness in Westport to improve his strength and speed.

"I need to improve my quickness a little bit and be a little more consistent as well," Reiter said.

"Certainly in the ACC it's a quick game," Woog added. "He is working on playing a little less deliberately. He has shown that he can play at a very high level and I think he will quickly adapt."